Tinkering with Neovim

After migrating from Vim to Emacs as my primary C++ editor in 2015, I switched from Vim to Neovim for miscellaneous non-C++ tasks as it is more convenient in a terminal. Customizing the editor with a language you are comfortable with is important. I found myself increasingly drawn to Neovim's terminal-based simplicity for various tasks. Recently, I've refined my Neovim setup to the point where I can confidently migrate my entire C++ workflow away from Emacs.

This post explores the key improvements I've made to achieve this transition. My focus is on code navigation.

Key mapping

I've implemented custom functions that simplify key mappings.

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local function map(mode, lhs, rhs, opts)
  local options = {}
  if opts then
    if type(opts) == 'string' then
      opts = {desc = opts}
    end
    options = vim.tbl_extend('force', options, opts)
  end
  vim.keymap.set(mode, lhs, rhs, options)
end
local function nmap(lhs, rhs, opts)
  map('n', lhs, rhs, opts)
end
local function tmap(lhs, rhs, opts)
  map('t', lhs, rhs, opts)
end

I've swapped ; and : for easier access to Ex commands, especially since leap.nvim renders ; less useful for repeating ftFT. 

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map({'n', 'x'}, ':', ';')
map({'n', 'x'}, ';', ':')

Cross references

Like many developers, I spend significantly more time reading code than writing it. Efficiently navigating definitions and references is crucial for productivity.

While the built-in LSP client's C-] is functional (see :h lsp-defaults tagfunc), I found it less convenient. Many Emacs and Neovim configurations advocate for gd. However, both G and D are placed on the left half of the QWERTY keyboard, making it slow to press them using the left hand.

For years, I relied on M-j to quickly jump to definitions.

To avoid a conflict with my recent zellij change (I adopted M-hjkl for pane navigation), I've reassigned J to trigger definition jumps. Although I've lost the original J (join lines) functionality, vJ provides a suitable workaround.

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nmap('J', '<cmd>Telescope lsp_definitions<cr>', 'Definitions')
nmap('M', '<cmd>Telescope lsp_references<CR>', 'References')

After making a LSP-based jump, the jump list can quickly fill with irrelevant entries as I navigate the codebase. Thankfully, Telescope's LSP functionality sets push_tagstack_on_edit to push an entry to the tag stack (see :h tag-stack). To efficiently return to my previous position, I've mapped H to :pop and L to :tag.

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nmap('H', '<cmd>pop<cr>', 'Tag stack backward')
nmap('L', '<cmd>tag<cr>', 'Tag stack forward')

I've adopted x as a prefix key for cross-referencing extensions. dl provide a suitable alternative for x's original functionality.

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nmap('xB', '<cmd>CclsBaseHierarchy<cr>')
nmap('xC', '<cmd>CclsOutgoingCalls<cr>', 'callee')
nmap('xD', '<cmd>CclsDerivedHierarchy<cr>')
nmap('xM', '<cmd>CclsMemberHierarchy<cr>', 'member')
nmap('xb', '<cmd>CclsBase<cr>')
nmap('xc', '<cmd>CclsIncomingCalls<cr>', 'caller')
nmap('xd', '<cmd>CclsDerived<cr>')
nmap('xi', '<cmd>lua vim.lsp.buf.implementation()<cr>', 'Implementation')
nmap('xm', '<cmd>CclsMember<cr>', 'member')
nmap('xn', function() M.lsp.words.jump(vim.v.count1) end, 'Next reference')
nmap('xp', function() M.lsp.words.jump(-vim.v.count1) end, 'Prev reference')
nmap('xt', '<cmd>lua vim.lsp.buf.type_definition()<cr>', 'Type definition')
nmap('xv', '<cmd>CclsVars<cr>', 'vars')

I utilize xn and xp to find the next or previous reference. The implementation, copied from from LazyVim, only works with references within the current file. I want to enable the xn map to automatically transition to the next file when reaching the last reference in the current file.

While using Emacs, I created a hydra with x as the prefix key to cycle through next references. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to replicate this behavior in Neovim.

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;; This does not work.
local Hydra = require('hydra')
Hydra({
  name = 'lsp xref',
  mode = 'n',
  body = 'x',
  heads = {
    {'n', function() M.lsp.words.jump(1) end},
    {'p', function() M.lsp.words.jump(-1) end},
    { "q", nil, { exit = true, nowait = true } },
  },
})

Movement

I use leap.nvim to quickly jump to specific identifiers (s{char1}{char2}), followed by telescope.nvim to explore definitions and references. Somtimes, I use the following binding:

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nmap('U', function()
  require'hop'.hint_words()
  require'telescope.builtin'.lsp_definitions()
end, 'Hop+definition')

Semantic highlighting

I've implemented rainbow semantic highlighting using ccls. Please refer to ccls and LSP Semantic Tokens for my setup.

Other LSP features

I have configured the CursorHold event to trigger textDocument/documentHighlight. When using Emacs, lsp-ui-doc automatically requests textDocument/hover, which I now lose.

Additionally, the LspAttach and BufEnter events trigger textDocument/codeLens.

Window navigation

While I've been content with the traditional C-w + hjkl mapping for years, I've recently opted for the more efficient C-hjkl approach.

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nmap('<C-h>', '<C-w>h')
nmap('<C-j>', '<C-w>j')
nmap('<C-k>', '<C-w>k')
nmap('<C-l>', '<C-w>l')

tmap('<C-h>', '<cmd>wincmd h<cr>')
tmap('<C-j>', '<cmd>wincmd j<cr>')
tmap('<C-k>', '<cmd>wincmd k<cr>')
tmap('<C-l>', '<cmd>wincmd l<cr>')

The keys mirror my pane navigation preferences in tmux and zellij, where I utilize M-hjkl.

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# tmux select pane or window
bind -n M-h if -F '#{pane_at_left}' 'select-window -p' 'select-pane -L'
bind -n M-j if -F '#{pane_at_bottom}' 'select-window -p' 'select-pane -D'
bind -n M-k if -F '#{pane_at_top}' 'select-window -n' 'select-pane -U'
bind -n M-l if -F '#{pane_at_right}' 'select-window -n' 'select-pane -R'
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// zellij M-hjkl
keybinds {
    normal clear-defaults=true {
        ...
        bind "Alt h" { MoveFocusOrTab "Left"; }
        bind "Alt j" { MoveFocus "Down"; }
        bind "Alt k" { MoveFocus "Up"; }
        bind "Alt l" { MoveFocusOrTab "Right"; }
    }
}

To accommodate this change, I've shifted my tmux prefix key from C-l to C-Space. Consequently, I've also adjusted my input method toggling from C-Space to C-S-Space.

Debugging

For C++ debugging, I primarily rely on cgdb. I find it superior to GDB's single-key mode and significantly more user-friendly than LLDB's gui command.

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cgdb --args ./a.out args

rr record ./a.out args
rr replay -d cgdb

I typically arrange Neovim and cgdb side-by-side in tmux or zellij. During single-stepping, when encountering interesting code snippets, I often need to manually input filenames into Neovim. While Telescope aids in this process, automatic file and line updates would be ideal.

Given these considerations, nvim-dap appears to be a promising solution. However, I haven't yet determined the configuration for integrating rr with nvim-dap.

Live grep

Telescope's extension telescope-fzf-native is useful.

I've defined mappings to streamline directory and project-wide searches using Telescope's live grep functionality:

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nmap('<leader>sd', '<cmd>lua require("telescope.builtin").live_grep({cwd=vim.fn.expand("%:p:h")})<cr>', 'Search directory')
nmap('<leader>sp', '<cmd>lua require("telescope.builtin").live_grep({cwd=MyProject()})<cr>', 'Search project')

Additionally, I've mapped M-n to insert the word under the cursor, mimicking Emacs Ivy's M-n (ivy-next-history-element) behavior.

Task runner

I use overseer.nvim to run build commands like ninja -C /tmp/Debug llc llvm-mc. This plugin allows me to view build errors directly in Neovim's quickfix window.

Following LazyVim, I use <leader>oo to run builds and <leader>ow to toggle the overseer window. To navigate errors, I use trouble.nvim with the ]q and [q keys.

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nmap('<leader>oo', '<cmd>OverseerRun<cr>')
nmap('<leader>ow', '<cmd>OverseerToggle<cr>')
 
nmap('[q', function()
  if require('trouble').is_open() then
    require('trouble').prev({ skip_groups = true, jump = true })
  else
    local ok, err = pcall(vim.cmd.cprev)
    if not ok then
      vim.notify(err, vim.log.levels.ERROR)
    end
  end
end)
nmap(']q', function()
  if require('trouble').is_open() then
    require('trouble').next({ skip_groups = true, jump = true })
  else
    local ok, err = pcall(vim.cmd.cnext)
    if not ok then
      vim.notify(err, vim.log.levels.ERROR)
    end
  end
end)

Reducing reliance on terminal multiplexer

As https://rutar.org/writing/from-vim-and-tmux-to-neovim/ nicely summarizes, running Neovim under tmux has some annoyance. I've been experimenting with reducing my reliance on zellij. Instead, I'll utilize more Neovim's terminal functionality.

toggleterm.nvim is a particularly useful plugin that allows me to easily split windows, open terminals, and hide them when not in use.

The default command <C-\><C-n> (switch to the Normal mode) is clumsy. I've mapped it to <C-s> (useless feature pause transmission, fwd-i-search in zsh).

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nmap('<leader>tf', function() require'toggleterm'.toggle(vim.v.count, nil, MyProject(), 'float', nil) end)
nmap('<leader>th', function() require'toggleterm'.toggle(vim.v.count, 10, MyProject(), 'horizontal', nil) end)
nmap('<leader>tv', function() require'toggleterm'.toggle(vim.v.count, 80, MyProject(), 'vertical', nil) end)

tmap('<C-s>', '<C-\\><C-n>')
-- Binding C-/ doesn't work in tmux/zellij
map({'n', 't'}, '<C-/>', '<cmd>ToggleTerm<cr>')
-- This actually binds C-/ in tmux/zellij
map({'n', 't'}, '<C-_>', '<cmd>ToggleTerm<cr>')

neovim-remote allows me to open files without starting a nested Neovim process.

I use mini.sessions to manage sessions.

Config switcher

Neovim's NVIM_APPNAME feature is fantastic for exploring pre-configured distributions to get inspiration.

Lua

Neovim embraces Lua 5.1 as a preferred scripting language. While Lua's syntax is lightweight and easy to learn, it doesn't shy away from convenience features like func 'arg' and func {a=42}.

LuaJIT offers exceptional performance.

LuaJIT with the JIT enabled is much faster than all of the other languages benchmarked, including Wren, because Mike Pall is a robot from the future. -- wren.io

This translates into noticeably smoother editing with LSP, especially for hefty C++ files – a significant advantage over Emacs. With Emacs, I've always felt that editing a large C++ file is slow.

The non-default local variables and 1-based indexing (shared with languages like Awk and Julia) are annoyances that I can live with when using a configuration language. So far, I've only needed index-sensitive looping in one specific location.

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-- For LSP semantic tokens
for type, colors in pairs(all_colors) do
  for i = 1,#colors do
    vim.api.nvim_set_hl(0, string.format('@lsp.typemod.%s.id%s.cpp', type, i-1), {fg=colors[i]})
  end
end